Apple’s ‘Gather Round’ Event Wrap-Up: iPhone Xs, iPhone Xs Max, iPhone XR, Apple Watch Series 4, and More

BY Evan Selleck

Published 12 Sep 2018

iPhone XS Event Watch Live

It’s September, which means that it’s one of the busiest months Apple has. This time around the company hosted an event it called “Gather Round”, in which it unveiled a new lineup of iPhones, a new smartwatch, and more.

Before this year’s iPhone event, there was a semi-constant flood of rumors suggesting we could see one of the busiest events to date, with not only three new iPhones getting announced, but also the new Apple Watch, new AirPods, a new MacBook, the AirPower wireless charging mat details, and more. But it turns out the reality was much different, as Apple kept the event pretty light on new hardware announcements, all things considered.

That being said, the excitement was still there. The same level of excitement we all expect from Apple executives while they announce new products was on display, and this year we did indeed get introduced to three new iPhones, a brand new smartwatch, and release dates for major software updates.

So, let’s get right into it. First up, the new iPhones:

iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max

Two new models, with the primary difference between the two being the screen sizes. The iPhone Xs is the true successor to the iPhone X, featuring the same (but improved) 5.8-inch OLED display as last year’s model. Meanwhile, the iPhone Xs Max boasts a giant 6.5-inch OLED display, marking Apple’s biggest smartphone display to date.

Under the hood both models feature the brand new A12 Bionic processor. Both handsets boast improved dual 12-megapixel cameras on the back, along with an updated 7-megapixel front-facing camera on both units. The iPhone Xs and iPhone Xs Max will be available in a new Gold finish, as well as Silver and Space Gray. They will be available in 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB.

Here are the important links:

iPhone Xr

If the two expensive options aren’t your cup of tea, how about the iPhone XR? This is Apple’s less expensive option, which features a 6.1-inch LCD “Liquid Retina” display. It has the same single 12MP wide-angle rear camera as the iPhone Xs’s, a front-facing 7MP camera, the A12 Bionic processor under the hood, and support for Face ID.

To the links!

Apple Watch Series 4

The newest Apple Watch features a larger display, sizes at 40mm and 44mm, and it supports all of the previous Apple Watch bands. The new wearable also supports electrocardiogram, or ECG, testing. The watch also features “all-day battery life”, and it launches later this month.

The important bits:

As for the rest, here are all the other important tidbits from the day’s fun:

What part of today’s announcements are you most excited about?